Ghosts
by Kidalana
Summary: Kino no Tabi [Kino's Journey] A Clinging Memory. A journey takes one all sorts of places, Kino and Hermes have the pleasure of visiting a pleasant country and a less than ordinary hotel.
1. Part 1

**A small note before proceeding;** Kida's head hurts… it is spinning and she is swinging it back and forth as she types this. Which is making her even more ill-feeling. However it is good to be writing again and I can ignore such small things. passes out due to something Today I bring you a fan fiction from a work of Keiichi Sigsawa; Kino no Tabi (Or Kino's Journey, Kino's Travels…) I don't own Kino no Tabi or Keiichi Sigsawa and am in no way related to either in any way at all. Therefore this is entirely unrelated and is rather a fan's ramble inspired by hours of mind-numbing television (it hurts, I swear!).

---------

Clouds seemed to be staying still as the lone traveler and her mechanical companion journeyed down a worn path. The surrounding countryside was rather pleasant to the two; however the last thing either wanted was to go careening into a tree because the small driver was too busy admiring the way water fell on rocks to her right or something as pointless as that. Since the two progressed forwards towards a destination ahead it was obvious that the two were traveling. From the looks of the two of them it was very possible that they had been at this traveling thing for a good bit of time. As silence continued to drape over the two like a nice warm blanket the road reached a peak and briefly they caught a view of lush open fields and narrow stone walls, spread before them with the road they were on cutting the scenery like a child's scissors. The wonderful view didn't last long as soon the two were coasting down the hill they had been at the top moments before.

The dark-clothed small driver brought her motorrad to a smooth stop at the country's gates and dismounted from her two-wheeled companion. Gently placing the vehicle on its kick stand and gently patting the gas tack in a comforting manner she turned towards a small building by the stone gate. The gate in its own manner was a rather sleek and simplistic design, smooth stones layered on top of one of each other with a wooden door between the arch. A rather tall structure with a small guard house off to the side, one that the small person walked up to the window chiseled into the side.

A middle-aged man sat in a chair with his back to the window and the young girl had to clear her throat slightly to get his attention. The copper-colored haired man turned suddenly, surprised but generally stable looking. Standing from his wooden chair and walking over he placed his matching blue uniform cap back on his head and bent over slightly to look the traveler in the eye, "Hello there, how may I help you today?" he asked in a crisp, even and rather pleasant sounding voice.

Reaching in her pockets in search of her traveling papers the traveler momentarily looked away and once they were from the pocket she replied in a crisp tone, "I'd like to go through the customs procedure to enter this country." A thin, rather feminine hand held out the worn travel papers and the uniformed man accepted the papers, after asking a few questions about the traveler he handed the papers back and opened the gate for her and her mechanical friend to go through the gate and into the country.

The inside of the country was just as simplistic and easy going as the outside was. People milled about happily and greeted one another as they passed fellow citizen as they moved from one place to another. For a moment the young traveler looked around, searching for something of interest in the country. Where as the country was rather beautiful and simplistic in design, clean as well, there was no one thing that really stood out to Kino. On impulse she progressed her way forwards across the stone-laded ground to a street-vendor who was cheerfully chirping off the prices of her various wares. Spotting the traveler and her companion the older woman waved cheerfully and gestured the dark-eyed girl over to her stand. Since she was already headed in the direction it appeared that she was following a simplistic instruction. Once in talking distance the woman held out a bright red apple to her, "Welcome to our lovely country, traveler, I hope you enjoy your stay." Accepting the apple she murmured her thanks to the older woman and progressed towards her right, further down the stone-path.

"That was rather nice of her," chirped a childish voice from her side.

Looking at the apple for a moment she nodded, "Yes, that was."

The day wore on with out either traveler doing much of anything. Soon the two went to an old-looking hotel to stay the night. With the near-set sun on the horizon behind the two as they entered and the man behind the front desk looked rather surprised that she had decided to enter the hotel. Bringing her motorrad with her to the front desk she looked at the man curiously for a moment before he final spoke to her, "How long would you like to stay?" his voice seemed to quiver and he seemed to expect for Kino to laugh and say she wasn't staying at the hotel or something to that tune. However the slouched over man realized she was serious when her reply was two nights. Nodding quite a bit he processed the money for the room and handed her a single metal key on a rusted ring. A dull colored tab attached informed her of her room assignment, 506. With a shacking hand he pointed towards and elevator for her to use and remained behind the desk.

"Is it okay if I keep my motorrad with me in my room?" she asked carefully looking at the man oddly once again.

He nodded his head vigorously and the dark-eyed girl took this opportunity to leave the front hall of the hotel and head for her room. As she entered the unsafe looking elevator she quickly found the button to take her to the fifth floor. Quickly reaching her destination she wheeled the rather silent motorrad down the thinly carpeted hallway. The wall paper and carpet sort of clashed in a bad way, both held busy patterns and hurt the eyes to a certain degree. However since both were age-worn and faded they kind of worked together to not be so much of an eye sore. The doors were simplistic rectangles that held brass numbers on the front proudly announcing the room number behind it. Soon both motorrad and rider reached what appeared to be the end of the hallway, having not missed any turns it was an oddity that their room assignment appeared to be missing.

"Where'd the room go, Kino?" the motorrad asked in the same tone as earlier.

For a moment the short girl was silent as she turned the two-wheeled vehicle around and went down the hallway again. This time she was extremely careful not to miss the room number as she passed by the various doors once again. The lighting for the somewhat narrow hallway was rather bright so there was no way she'd mistaken a six for a different number. Eventually the room was located and the now-weary traveler unlocked the door and entered the room, pushing the motorrad with her into the room. Closing the door behind her and placing the key in plain site on the table by the door. As opposed to the hallway the room was tastefully decorated with what little furniture there was matching nicely to each item and the walls were simplistically pattered and the floors of a solid color. Placing her motorrad further in the room the young traveler removed her boots and left them by the door. Fully clothed she fell onto the bed, sighing as the fluffy mess of mattress, blankets and pillows attempted to eat her like a hungry monster.

The silence that had fallen was broken again as the motorrad spoke once again, "Why do you think you missed the room the first time you walked passed?"

Pausing a moment she stretched her arms above her head, "I think I was just tired Hermes." Standing up once again she got a fresh change of undergarments from one of the packs on her motorrad and headed to the bathroom to shower. The bathroom was heavy on tile, each piece matching the other pieces perfectly and blending together well, however the bathroom still looked a bit old. Showering quickly and changing just as quick Kino soon left the bathroom for the comfort of the bed. Placing the woodsman under her pillow and the cannon on the bedside table the dark-haired girl rested her head on the pillow and easily slipped beneath all the covers on the bed.

"Good night Hermes," she said softly as her eye lids grew heavy welcoming the oncoming sleep.

"Night Kino," the motorrad said softly as well.

Within moments the two were fast asleep.

However sleep didn't last long for the two as the sounds of a soft giggling awoke the sleeping girl suddenly. Instinct told her hand to pull the woodsman from under her pillow and slowly sit up. When Kino was sitting upright in her bed she looked around slowly, her eyes adjusting to the dark and her mind trying to discover where the laughing had come from. From her point in bed she couldn't see anything, no signs of anyone laughing. And it was starting to seem like some sort of deranged dream she was having. Not really wanting to wake up her motorrad companion she remained silent until he made a small coughing sound to inform her that yes, he was awake.

Turning her head slightly she lowered the weapon and looked over towards Hermes, deciding to ask him the question that rattled around in her mind, "Did you hear laughing earlier?"

For a moment it seemed the two-wheeled object was lost in thought, after a moment he stated in his boyish voice, "Yeah, I heard laughing," maybe if he was more human he'd be nodding his head right now, however since he wasn't all he could use to convey thoughts and expressions were words, "It was too high pitch to be you Kino, sounded like a little girl.

Kino, who was human, however could nod her head when she felt the need to. Nodding it slightly she reached up and brushed short dark hair out of her eyes, "Not extremely young, old enough to be out on her own apparently." Looking thoughtful for a moment she added, "Maybe eight years old?"

The reply was an eager agreement from the motorrad, "Yeah! And it sounded so close too," he paused as if nervous of something, "You don't think it's a ghost Kino, do you?" now it was obvious the motorrad was nervous.

However the thought of ghost lurking in the shadows made the talking motorrad more nervous then the traveling girl, as she smiled at him and reached her arm across the short distance between her and the bed. Lightly stroking his headlight in a comforting manner, rather similar to how a mother calms a small child, she assured him that it was probably a child from a neighboring room who was up late. "Nothing to be afraid of Hermes," she added as she pulled her hand back and tucked the woodsman under her pillow once again.

Silence fell across the room and the motorrad said, less nervous, "Night Kino."

To which Kino replied, "Night Hermes." Once again the two welcomed sleep and for the second time that night sleep welcomed them. Soon the sun rose and a fully energized dark haired traveler emerged from the mess of blankets and pillows that the bed had become over night. Not really the type to roll around it had been surprised that the pillow that rested under her head when she initially went to bed was held close to her small chest and the woodsman was tucked carefully in the pillow. As for the blankets the fluffy objects were tangled around the girl, keeping her warm and rather hidden. At a glance one might look at the bed and assume that there wasn't a sleepy figure in the mess of comfort but rather it was just a mess. After untangling her self from the blankets the morning began with a refreshing shower. However it had to be a refreshingly cold shower as the hot water refused to work for the traveler as it had done the night before.

An exclamation of pain came from the bathroom as the shower came to an end. It was a surprisingly girlish cry of, 'Ow!' as the door opened and the soaking wet traveler quickly left the small confined space. Apparently the hot water was slow on the uptake. Which lead to a refreshingly cold shower becoming a painfully hot and scalding shower. Not that great a way to start a morning. Good thing she was basically done with showering for the moment. After some careful work the shower was turned off and allowed to drip water from its faucet. The prior cry of pain had awoken the girl's traveling companion so when she emerged from the bathroom, slightly wet and nice and clean an explanation was instantly demanded.

Walking over to the neatly made bed and dropping the towel that was loosely around her shoulders onto a wooden chair she sat down for a moment on the sleeping surface to explain to Hermes what had happened.

"Was it really that hot?" he asked in a serious, almost a concerned sort of tone.

Kino nodded her head slightly and fell back onto the bed, "It was really surprising too."

For a while the two were silent and the young girl pulled the woodsman out from under the pillow, the motorrad seemed to be thinking over something for a moment, however he didn't say much of anything. Sitting up once again the dark haired girl smiled at Hermes, "Sorry about waking you up so early."

For a moment he grumbled about something but soon it was obvious that he'd forgiven his traveling friend. Standing up off the bed the morning ritual of cleaning her guns and practicing her quick draw began. It was rather comforting for something familiar to be surrounding her for that short amount of time. After finishing the morning routine she changed into her clothing, vowing to ask the man at the counter if there was a washing-service provided. Looking out the window at the early morning sleeping town the thought that she should tidy her room up slightly came across, turning slightly she decided to start with the bed, after all, she'd left it in a sorry state before the shower gone bad. Looking at the bed with a curious expression on her face she realized that it was already made, maybe she'd done so and forgotten she had? Hermes very well couldn't have made the bed, after all.

A couple moments later the dark eyed traveler was wheeling her two-wheeled companion out the door of the hotel room, key pocketed and making a bee-line for the elevator. The rickety old thing was right were it had been the night before and the two were soon in the front lobby again. As he had been left the night before the strange man was once again behind the front counter, shaking nervously and the slightest bit terrified to see Kino, "Did you have a nice sleep?" he stuttered as he twisted his hands about one another, a very distracting motion the young traveler decided.

For a brief moment she toyed with the idea of informing the man of the strange occurrence at night but decided against it, it didn't look like he'd take such a thing too lightly. Nodding her head instead she asked the man her question, "Do you have a clothing washing service?"

At this the man shook his head rather violently, an obvious no. "I can have supplies sent up to your room, sir, for you to do your own laundry," he paused and then quickly added, "If you'd like."

The dark haired girl merely nodded her head in acceptance of the decision and bid the trembling man a good morning and from there returned to exploring the country. Once outside the hotel Hermes commented rather cheerfully, "I thought his head was going to fall off!"

A small laugh came from the dark haired girl as she realized that it did seem that way with the hotel man.


	2. Part 2

As it was the day before the small place wasn't all that interesting, however the various people greeted her cheerfully and a few enlisted her in help with simplistic morning chores. By the time the sun was higher in the sky she had learned a few more things about farming then when she had first entered the country, not like such knowledge would be that useful however. Sitting on a sun baked stone wall she was eating the apple from yesterday, not only was its color beautiful but the taste was extremely nice as well. Finishing it and enjoying the sun caress her body she decided she'd have some more later. This led to the young girl purchasing a few apples more for lunch and an extra for later in the day. 

Soon night fell and the two went to a relatively cheap restaurant for dinner. The price was fair and the food was wonderful, just as the villagers had promised her. The restaurant didn't look considerably old but rather new and up to date. A matching look that Kino thought worked very well for the busy place. Dinner was a rather simplistic meal and the waitress cheerfully insisted that the young traveler added some carrots to the meal. Seeing the blank expression on the dark eyed girl's face the waitress insisted that she needed proper nutrition to grow properly. This was followed up with a suggestion of a glass of milk. The odd behavior made her rather confused but in the end she wound up getting a few uncooked carrots with her meal and found that the orange objects were just as nicely colored and tasteful as the apples from before.

Upon eating enough for dinner it was back to the hotel to sleep. Raising her hand in a wordless greeting to the man at the front desk she realized he was shaking quite a bit and once again twisting his hands about each other. Still finding this behavior rather strange she pushed Hermes into the elevator and soon the two arrived on their floor. For whatever reason most of the lights were out in the hallway and a strange chill settled on the brown haired girl. Holding the motorrad tightly she progressed forward in the dim lighting and soon found her room. Anxious to get out of the dark and cold hallway she placed the key in the lock and turned it, and then she turned the brass knob and pushed the door slightly, only for it not to move in the slightest bit. Pausing for a moment she tried again after checking the room number. After a small bit of force the door opened and the two entered the room. Once the door was closed behind her and locked, she once again placed the key on the table by the door and took note that items for her to wash her clothing in her room were neatly placed by the bed.

In a couple of minutes the dark haired girl had changed into fresh clothing for sleep, washed the clothing she typically wore and hung it to dry in the bathroom. Stretching her arms above her head in a single motion a small yawn escaped the small girl. Walking past her mechanical companion she wished him a good night and climbed into the comforting bed. After a moment's pause she was wished a good night by Hermes and soon the two were asleep.

Once again Kino awoke to a strange occurrence. As she slept she heard a soothing voice, an older woman's, and felt a gentle touch on her forehead. For a moment she was silent, listening to the tune the woman cooed as she ran her hand across her forehead and hair, a gesture of comfort. Opening her eyes she looked above her and to her side slightly, and indeed there was an older woman there, with porcelain skin, silver eyes and a cascade of deep colored hair. Silent the young traveler wasn't sure if she should be nervous and afraid or just wait for the woman to disappear as suddenly as she had appeared. The door was locked and no way a person would climb many stories to go in through a window that was tough to open, so the wonder of how the motherly woman got into her room made her rather curious, and slightly confused. Soon the song concluded and the woman smiled down at the dark eyed girl and pulled her thin hand away from the young girl. Looking up at the woman confused she became quite a bit more confused when the woman leaned over to gently kiss her forehead. The gesture had no real touch to it but it still made the young traveler. Feeling the woman tuck the blankets back around her carefully and gently she once again felt tired and watched the woman carefully as she stood up from her place at Kino's bed side and once again smiled, "Sweet dreams Kino." She said in a silky voice and turned to leave the room.

How did the woman know her name?

Soon the strange woman was gone and the young girl turned slightly to face Hermes better. With her voice barely above a whisper she addressed her two-wheeled companion, "Hermes, did you see that?" she inquired.

"Yes I did!" he exclaimed as a quick response, "Who was that woman?"

A slight shake of her head confirmed that the dark haired girl didn't even really know who the woman was herself. And if Hermes didn't notice the strange woman's lack of solidity she wasn't about to point it out to the easily made nervous motorrad.

However he had noticed and now demanded of his friend an answer, "Was she a post?"

Another odd expression crossed the young girl's face, a post? The woman looked more like a ghost than a post to her. He probably meant ghost then, meaning there'd be no calming the motorrad down easily. "Probably," was her soft reply. Closing her eyes once again she added, "Will you be able to sleep okay?"

"No!" was exclaimed a little louder than needed and the dark eyed girl cringed inwardly, why was he so loud? "It might come back to kill me!" He added in a nervous tone.

A small sigh came from the traveler and once again reached out and gently stroked his headlight, "I don't think any of them intend to kill us, Hermes, they could have done that plenty of times before."

Following this statement was silence as he no doubt allowed the words to settle before complaining or commenting. Instead of complaining he cheerfully wished her a good night and Kino tucked her arm back under the covers.

"Good night Hermes," she replied, and for a little longer she remained awake thinking over how his behavior made sense, due to having a haunted hotel guests probably left at rather random intervals in addition to getting extremely mad at him. And with something being haunted it would no doubt gain a reputation among other people and Kino couldn't think of many people who would enjoy staying in a haunted hotel. So he most likely had little business. It would have been nice, however if the man had warned the young girl about the hotel being haunted. Then things would have made a bit more sense. Sorting these thoughts out in her head at some point she fell asleep once again.

Early morning greeted her once again and she rose to shower and practice with her guns. Just like the day before the bed had been made while Kino showered, maybe room service came into the room while she showered and made the bed? But during the entire stay she hadn't in fact actually seen anyone fitting such a description. Soon after getting ready for the day the dark haired girl took her leave of the hotel, saying nothing to the man who owned the hotel but continuing out the door. With no real reason to stay the young girl spent a bit of the morning purchasing a few more apples, for the trip, she explained to the woman and her motorrad. Breakfast was a wonderful apple again and yet again she was dragged into morning chores of the people who lived in the country. Around noon time she left, saying a farewell to those who wished her safe travels.

Outside the gate Kino sat a top Hermes once again and drove down the road, not taking the same turn that she had earlier but rather opting for a new road, one she had yet to travel. Silence wasn't for this journey as the motorrad soon wanted to talk, "Kino," he started, not whining she noted, "Why do you think that man didn't tell us about the ghosts?"

For a while she was silent, "I guess he can't accept that they're there either."

---------

**An ending note;** Yeah; completed this around the same day I started it. Pardon any spelling errors and grammatical issues. I do my best. I think I over used the word 'motorrad'… feel free to agree. Thank JagaGirl for inspiring Kida.


End file.
